Coalition for Change’s Japaridze names release of political prisoners, new elections as conditions for Ivanishvili’s delegation credentials in PACE

“Challenging the suspension of credentials for Ivanishvili’s delegation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) sends a strong political signal. The Monitoring Committee is currently reviewing the process and will make the final decision,” stated Zurab Japaridze, a member of the Coalition for Change.

Attending the PACE winter session in Strasbourg, Japaridze explained that the Committee must choose between two options.

“One option is to suspend Ivanishvili’s delegation’s credentials, and the other is to recognize them for a certain period and under specific provisions. The Committee is deliberating these two scenarios. I cannot say for certain what provisions may be suggested if the credentials are recognized. If that occurs, the conditions may only include the release of political prisoners and new elections. There are no other conditions in place in Georgia,” Japaridze stated.

“We are here at the invitation of various political groups; this time we were invited by ALDE (the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe), and we participated in the ALDE bureau meeting. They sought to understand our perspective on recent developments in Georgia and how events unfolded following the elections, particularly regarding the investigation of the violent incidents. We brought a considerable amount of material to share,” he continued.

The credentials of the Georgian delegation were challenged during the first winter session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) on January 27 by the EPP representative. The Council of the EU is expected to make its final decision on Wednesday, January 29.